Universities and colleges are institutions that offer education beyond the secondary (preparatory or high school) level. This broad category of institutions may include colleges offering only undergraduate preparation; universities offering undergraduate and \Tgraduate education\t; free-standing professional schools offering degrees in law, medicine, engineering and the like; and two-year \Tcommunity and junior colleges\t offering technical, vocational and liberal arts programs. Terminology for institutions as well as types of programs vary greatly within a single country. In general, a college offers degree programs for undergraduate students, but it may have master's degree programs also. The universities usually dedicated to three comprehensive activities: instruction for undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees; research geared to expanding the frontiers of knowledge; and outreach or dissemination of learning beyond the boundaries of the institution through the printed word, scholarly associations, formal and non-formal instruction, and worldwide telecommunications and computer linkages. National systems of higher education in general are geared to serving youth between the ages of 17 and 25. The accompanying table for selected countries shows enrollment as a percentage of the country's total population between the ages of 20 and 24. This percentage of participation has been growing appreciably in many countries. Where once higher education was reserved for a small elite, today university education in many countries is a massive social enterprise. This can be seen in the enrollment figures in the table for all students attending universities and equivalent institutions in 1985. HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSITY Today's university had its beginning in medieval Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries. The ancient civilizations of Greece, Rome, Byzantium, and Islam all had centers of learning that predate the rise of the university in Europe and from which the university drew much of benefit. Nevertheless, the general features of the university's present form, including prescribed curricula, formal examinations, and degrees, are the result of its medieval inheritance. Among the several centers for learning that arose during this time, two in particular, Bologna and Paris, served as models for the rest. Bologna developed primarily as a corporation of students, while Paris arose as an institution of masters. The medieval Latin term universitas meant a community or corporation of any kind, but over time it came to mean a center for advanced learning with legal standing and various special privileges. Most of the early students and masters were clerics or members of religious orders, but membership was not restrictive and soon included physicians, lawyers, and other learned men. Over time the universities developed increasing autonomy to establish their own methods of self-governance, including selection of members and leaders and of the content and direction of their studies. Among the numerous early universities, Oxford also gained prominence. This university adopted the master-dominated pattern of Paris and became an important center of scholarship in England. Often migration of students and masters out of the older universities were the impetus for the founding of new centers. Such a migration out of Oxford resulted in the development of Cambridge in the early 13th century. A number of other universities arose in France, Italy, and the Iberian peninsula during this time. Central Europe, Scandinavia, and the Holy Roman Empire did not develop universities until the 14th and 15th centuries. Universities were crucial to the cultural and social vitality of the West. Throughout the subsequent centuries, which saw the flowering of the Renaissance and the upheavals of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, the universities were vital centers of intellectual stimulation and essential sources of civil and church leaders. During the great periods of exploration and settlement of North and South America, the university was part of the cultural legacy that was transplanted. By the early 17th century, centers of higher education had been founded in several locations in the New World including Peru, Mexico, New France (or Canada), and New England (the United States). In the 19th century, the university developed into its contemporary forms in most of the nations of Europe and in North and South America. Several forces converged to stimulate this expansion. Education was becoming more secularized and more widespread. The churches, both Catholic and Protestant, increasingly lost control of institutions of learning even as the nation states exerted greater authority for supporting and controlling education at all levels. Nationalism increased throughout the century, carrying with it the belief that each nation needed an educational system unique in form and function to suit its particular values and goals. The rise of science and the accompanying belief in progress took hold within universities and spurred various forms of expansion and intellectual activity. 19th-Century Development in Europe and Asia Germany developed the most successful and widely copied national system of higher education. The jewel in its crown was the University of Berlin, founded in 1810. Built on the principle of free inquiry for both teachers and students, the University of Berlin attracted scholars from around the world. The seminar, the scientific laboratory, and the monographic study were products of the new form of intellectual inquiry and were widely copied in other countries. In France, a national system of higher education was established during the Napoleonic regime in 1806. Napoleon centralized education under the "University of France", which had responsibility for all education from primary to university levels. Standardized curricula, schedules, and examinations were the hallmarks. The system was not much emulated by other nations except Spain. Subsequent demands among French university faculty and students in the 19th and 20th centuries centered on gaining greater autonomy and access. In England in the 19th century a number of new universities were created, as growing numbers of students demanded access to higher education. Today Britain has over 40 universities, although Oxford and Cambridge remain the most prestigious. East European and some Asian and other countries experienced much growth in universities and colleges during the 19th and 20th centuries. The countries in Eastern and Central Europe, Scandinavia, and the Balkans all fostered new institutions, many modeled on the German idea. India, Canada, and Australia, then parts of the British Empire, also established important centers of learning. Japan established the University of Tokyo in 1877. China permitted some international exchange toward the end of the 19th century that promoted growth and change in its universities. Twentieth Century Development Despite the ravages of two world wars and the damage and disruption of uncounted local military contests, many nations of the world have received increasing demands for higher education from their people and have responded by building more universities and other types of higher education institutions. Third-World nations in Africa, Southeast Asia, and South America have built new universities. Some universities have reached enormous size, such as the National Autonomous University of Mexico, which has over 300,000 students. It has become increasingly easy and common for students to take part or all of their education in a foreign country--sometimes through exchange programs. Professors often teach abroad. Where once a college or university was confined to the narrow boundaries of its location, today's universities can be thought of as global enterprises linking scholars around the world in often instantaneous communication. DEVELOPMENT OF THE U. S. UNIVERSITY The universities and colleges in the United States developed several distinct forms. The earliest, Harvard College, was founded in 1636, not long after the first settlers arrived in New England. The founders were concerned with the perpetuation of learning and the preparation of clergymen and other leaders. These aims guided the founding of eight other colonial colleges during the next 140 years. All of the colleges were begun and supported by religious groups; each was staffed and led mainly by clergy; and each had as a central purpose the education of church and civic leaders. The curriculum of the early colleges included Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, logic, rhetoric, ancient history, and mathematics. Scientific topics, modern languages, and literature were added slowly. Most learning was by rote; all courses were prescribed, and discipline was strictly observed. Teachers were typically young men preparing for the clergy or other professions. Only the college president served for relatively long periods, often combining his duties with preaching in a local church. Unlike the faculty-governed European universities, lay boards of trustees directed the policies and finances of the college through the leadership of the president. During the 19th century a number of different types of colleges and universities were created to serve the growing diversity and needs of the people as they pushed westward. Thomas Jefferson founded one of the earliest state universities in Virginia in 1819. Several other states began ventures in higher education, usually with practical, nonsectarian intent. State schools in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Michigan were opened with agriculture, engineering, and applied science curricula while older colleges such as Harvard, Yale, and Dartmouth added scientific schools. Normal schools were instituted in response to a growing demand for elementary and secondary school teachers; many later expanded into comprehensive colleges, while others were incorporated within universities. Similarly, professional schools for law and medicine were begun or incorporated into other institutions. In 1862, Congress passed legislation for the Land-Grant College (\TMorrill Act\t), which gave federal lands to provide resources for states that would establish colleges to prepare students in agriculture and the mechanical arts. \Tland-grant colleges\t and universities developed in all 50 states with a tradition of providing a broad range of applied, scientific knowledge; accessible, low-cost education; a comprehensive curriculum including both undergraduate and graduate programs; and a goal of public service to citizens. These institutions are an important contribution to higher education; a number of U.S. public universities have earned first-rank academic reputations. In 1876, the John Hopkins University was founded in Baltimore as the first U.S. institution to embody the German ideal of university education. From that time forward graduate education was an important aspect of many institutions. Older ones, such as Harvard and Yale, and new ones, such as Stanford and Chicago, adopted the aims of advanced learning conducted in a spirit of freedom and autonomy. Faculty members henceforth were expected to hold a Ph.D. degree and to engage in research and publication along with teaching. Several varieties of education for women, blacks, and ethnic and religious groups were developed. Women's education began with the seminary that offered a separate form of education distinct from that provided men. Then in 1833, Oberlin College opened as as coeducational, degree-granting college. Eventually, all state colleges and universities became coeducational. Today, women comprise about 54% of enrollments, and \Tcoeducation\t is the predominant form of higher education for both men and women (although a number of single-sex colleges continue to thrive). Although some blacks were able to attend college before 1850, most colleges for black people were started after the Civil War. In the 20th century, judicial, legislative, and civil rights efforts have provided support for historically \Tblack colleges\t and for the admission to and graduation of blacks from other institutions. Asian and Hispanic Americans have usually attended predominantly white institutions; Native Americans, however, have several colleges of their own in addition to being able to enroll in other colleges. Catholics, Jews, and various Protestant religious groups also established colleges specifically to serve their students. Many of these institutions, having achieved academic distinction, attract students from other backgrounds as well. Indeed, the extensive access to higher education for people of many different social and economic backgrounds, while it has not been easily achieved, is a hallmark of the American system of higher education. During the 20th century, the United States greatly expanded the number of institutions, the number of students enrolled, and the kinds of programs available. In 1940, there were 1,708 colleges and universities serving approximately 1,388,000 students. In 1989, there are 3,587 two-year and four-year institutions serving approximately 12,768,300 students. This expansion was due to a number of factors including greater federal and state support. The G.I. \TBill of Rights\t legislation of 1944 provided one enrollment surge when it permitted World War II veterans to attend universities and colleges under government sponsorship. The "baby boom" that followed the war swelled the enrollment in the 1960's and beyond. Returning adults now comprise a rapidly increasing college population, many of them going part-time. Among the institutions created during this period to address the needs of new population groups, community and technical colleges have grown tremendously. Today there are over 1,450 public and private two-year colleges offering a wide range of college transfer, technical, and practical programs. Over 40% of all students in U.S. higher education are enrolled in these colleges. During World War II and afterward scientific and technological advances encouraged by the government stimulated many changes in universities. Research rapidly supplanted teaching as a primary preoccupation of many faculty, and outreach programs for credit and noncredit have extended education beyond the boundaries of many campuses. Many new fields of knowledge have developed, such as biotechnology and nuclear medicine, and faculty specialists are frequently called upon by business and government to help solve problems. Faculty members today are far different from the temporary tutors of two centuries ago; so too are the institutions in which they work. PROBLEMS FACING HIGHER EDUCATION The late 20th century has been called the Information Age. With the advent of computers and advanced telecommunications, the explosion of knowledge in many disciplines, and a rising sense of a global community, universities find themselves in the middle rather than on the periphery of social change. Demand for university education has never been greater worldwide, but universities face many problems. Despite strong demand, many countries do not have the resources to build the universities or hire the faculty. Older universities often lack resources to modernize their laboratories and classrooms. Faculty members are expensive to train and often find jobs in industry or government more attractive and lucrative. Industry has grown impatient with the slowness of the university response and has begun to train its own personnel. The cost of education has grown faster than family income in many countries, so students have difficulty paying for education. As a result, wealthy students, who usually receive better preparatory education, gain admission while students from poorer families, or who are members of various minority groups, are sometimes shut out. Often these poorer students must settle for a less expensive and lower quality education--or none at all. Hence, the gap between rich and poor, between majority and minority, becomes an undesirable gap between the educated and the uneducated. Measures to mitigate this trend include \Topen admission\t, various forms of government aid, and the expansion of public institutions. For many individuals the connection between a university education and a well-paying job is significantly direct, but many educators believe there are important things to be learned that are not job-related. Educators try to design educationally sound programs and curricula that are also helpful vocationally. As governments contribute greater shares of the revenues on which universities and colleges depend, the autonomy of institutions with regard to their policies and practices is often threatened. In more centralized countries, manpower allocations may override educational needs. The autonomy of the university is never permanent; it must be reestablished from time to time. This is never more obvious than in the frequent disputes over \Tacademic freedom\t. Universities traditionally reserve the right to teach and research freely, but those outside the university may object to what is taught or researched or may wish to direct it for their own ends. When universities refuse to comply or when they teach or research controversial subjects, conflicts with outsiders arise. If the outsiders also control resources important to the university the threat to academic freedom and to autonomy may be very great indeed. University leaders must maintain a judicious balance between the public's need for a responsive and relevant university and a university's need to pursue the truth where it finds it. Such a balance is always precarious, but never more so than now when universities are so vitally important to their societies. In the United States, universities also face some additional problems. Enrollment projections indicate that the number of college-age youth will decline significantly in the years ahead. Some states anticipate as much as a 25% decline. If enrollments are not sufficient, some colleges will cut back or close. With public colleges enrolling nearly 80% of all students, the vitality of the private sector is diminished and the burden on taxpayers is further exacerbated. Dominance by universities in the higher education system is faulted for causing an erosion of the undergraduate curriculum by overspecialization and an overemphasis on research rather than on teaching. The curriculum is also criticized for being insensitive to the contributions of non-Western and nonwhite people. Hence the university's traditional role as preserver and disseminator of a society's culture can conflict with a changing definition of what is important to know. Finally, there is a persistent struggle to maintain quality in the face of various demands to serve more diverse individuals to respond to more and different social needs, and to preserve and protect the ancient traditions and prerogatives of the university while creating the means for change. KATHRYN M. \TMoore\t Bibliography: Ben-David, Joseph, Trends in American Higher Education (1981); Boyer, Ernest, College: The Undergraduate Experience in America (1988); Burn, Barbara, Higher Education in Nine Countries (1971); Clark, Burton R.,The Higher Education System (1983) and, as ed., Perspectives on Higher Education (1984); Daly, L.J., The Medieval University, 1200-1400 (1962); Geiger, Roger L., To Advance Knowledge: The Growth of American Research Universities (1986); Horowitz, Helen L., Campus Life (1987); Kerr, Clark, The Uses of the University, 3d ed. (1982); Rudolph, Frederick, Curriculum: A History of the American Undergraduate Course of Study Since 1636 (1977); Solomon, Barbara, In the Company of Educated Women (1985); Stone, Lawrence, ed., The University in Society, 2 vols. (1974); Veysey, Laurence, The Emergence of the American University (1965; repr. 1970).